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I'd rather be a failure at something I love than a success at something I hate. ~ George Burns

Opportunity Knocks: Creative Ways to Make a Living Without A Job

Are Your Attitudes About Money Holding You Back?Part 2 in a 2-Part Series About Women and Money

Valerie and her wonder dog, "Cokie Roberts"

By Valerie Young

Well I’m back from my big New York trip and ready to pick up where I left off in the discussion of women and money. The first part of this article highlighted some common and potentially limiting attitudes some women hold about money including a tendency to feel undeserving or even shame for making – or wanting to make – good money.

Moral and other money-related dilemmas are not unique to women. Yet, having and managing money is often a bigger challenge for women. It’s not surprising when you consider it was not until 1974 that all women got the right to have business credit in their own names. Today the barriers are more attitudinal than institutional. Just ask Gail.

“Making Money is Selfish”

Gail is a consultant and trainer to non-profits. “Many times over the years,” she says, “I've encountered and been frustrated by the attitude that there is a special ‘glory’ for non-profits in making do with as little as possible, using outdated equipment and shabby facilities, paying staff little, working them too hard and offering few benefits, expecting the director to also be the janitor, etc., etc.” Adding, “In this framework, for-profit = bad (the “dark side”) and non-profit = good, so apparently money must be a necessary evil.”

Despite having spent more than 20 years working in the non-profit sector herself, Gail could never quite put her finger on what was behind these attitudes. Last summer she attended the Work at What You Love workshop and the light bulb went on. She explains:

“A woman in one of my discussion groups was feeling real anguish that her business idea could make her significant money. She had spent her career in non-profits and felt it would be somehow ‘wrong’ and ‘selfish’ to earn a larger income by working for-profit. The connection that jumped out at me between this attitude and your article is the large percentage of non-profit staff who are women. A coincidence? I don't think so!”

“No Nobility in Poverty”

Not everyone gets what all the fuss is about. Fayette, a 54 year old single mom and long time small business owner wanted me to know that she’d raised three children and managed to get them all through college. “Had I not been marketing and making money in my business, my kids would not have made it to the point where they are now. All of this I did on top of working a 40 hour a week job.” Adding, “When you are in business, one of the things you are in it for is to make money. My saying is, ‘There is no nobility in poverty.’”

There may not be any nobility in poverty but there sure is a lot of fear about it. Suze Orman cites a 2006 survey in which nearly half the women respondents said they’ve imagined ending up homeless. It’s no wonder that many of the women I heard from are actively exploring their relationship with money. “I may not be happier rich but am I happy being poor?” asks fellow reader and writer, poet and interfaith minister Sandra Lee Schubert. Answering her own question she writes:

“No. So I don't tell ‘those’ friends about my goals or what I am setting up online. I have joined groups that support my goals. At this moment I want to make MONEY. And I am no longer ashamed to say that. I want an apartment at the river’s edge overlooking Manhattan. I want to be able to afford the kind of medical care to improve my life. I want to buy good clothes. I want to feel generous again. That feeling will come from me. Slowly I am spending money on my education, creating my Web site and laying the foundation.”

At the moment Sandra says none of this makes her feel particularly comfortable, “But,” she adds, “looking at living in poverty in my golden years makes me really uncomfortable.” (You must visit Sandra’s delightful Web site and see an adorable photo of “young Sandra” at Writing-For-Life.com)

Change Your Thinking and Change Your Life

Someone who has absolutely no qualms about women entrepreneurs making money is Nell Merlino, cofounder and president of Count Me In for Women’s Economic Independence, the leading national non-profit of online micro loans for women entrepreneurs. Nell is also the visionary behind Make Mine a Million $ Business. MakeMineAMillion.org

Along with founding partner, OPEN from American Express®, the Make Mine a Million $ Business program hopes to inspire and support one million women entrepreneurs to reach annual revenues of $1 million by the year 2010. The program provides a combination of financing, mentoring, marketing and technology tools to help grow their businesses from micro to millions.

Someone who has done just that is Garnett Newcombe. Her Los Angeles-based organization, Human Potential Consultants, trains veterans, newly released convicts, and others to return to the workplace. Garnett had managed to grow her business to $400,000 a year in revenues but then hit a wall.

Then, she decided to compete for a spot in the Make Mine a Million $ Business program (think American Idol for entrepreneurs) and made it. Barely a year later, she’s grown her business to $4.2 million and has $18 million more in contracts. And she’s added 70 staff members to what had been a 10 person operation.

In the last article I told you that I’ve never aspired to be a millionaire. But I have to tell you I’m kind of warming up to the idea. Between 1995 and 2005 I probably spent a total of $2,000 on books and courses to help me learn how to grow my business. That’s a total of $200 a year. My business grew steadily to the point where I could pay the bills but not much more.

Then, between the fall of 2006 and 2007, I invested over $25,000 in my own education. This year alone it looks like it will be around $16,000. Just a few years ago, this would have been unthinkable for me. But what I have very quickly discovered is that for every $100 I have spent on self-study programs, a mastermind group, or a live workshop I have made $3,000 back. You do the math.

Change Your Thinking and Change Other People’s Lives

What turns a lot of women off, including me, are the people who make it ALL about the money. Worse is when I hear some big internet millionaire bragging about how he found someone in some developing country to work for him for a few bucks an hour. It’s sickening.

For me it’s not about making money for the sake of making money. I don’t need a fancy car or a bigger house. I don’t even wear half the clothes I already own. It’s not about having more “stuff.” For me, the goal of making more money is that it will allow me to do more for other people.

I’ve always contributed to favorite causes on a regular basis… $50 dollars here, $100 there. But in 2006 I decided to use my good fortune to help those far less fortune than I am by partnering with a wonderful micro-grant organization called Trickle Up TrickleUp.org to donate a portion of all profits from Changing Course.

With your help, in December, I was able to donate $5,000. That money directly helped 50 people previously living on $1 a day to get the seed money they need to start small businesses. When you consider their families the impact is closer to 250 people. But these are just numbers.

Putting a human face on some of these hard working entrepreneurs, I feel incredibly grateful and humbled. (Click here to read these inspiring profiles TrickleUp.org/entrepreneurs/profile.html) In 2008 I hope to double my contribution.

Never Say, “I Can’t Afford It.”

I started to write, “If I can afford it, in 2008 I hope to double my contribution.” Then I remembered some advice I read that said you should never say “I can’t afford it” to anything. You can say, “That’s interesting, but it’s not for me,” or you can say, “Where do I sign up!” or you can say, “I can’t swing it right now.” But when you say “I can’t afford it” unconsciously you’re telling yourself that you not only don’t have the money right now but that you never will.

You might not be ready yet to imagine yourself making a million dollars. And you may not be in a position to give away thousands of dollars. But that doesn’t mean you can’t change your thinking in small but important ways.

I’ve barely scratched the surface on what is a complicated and vast subject. But in doing so I hope to stimulate a conversation that can enable all of us to grow, learn, and prosper...whatever prosperity means to you.

P.S. On a personal note: I was brought up in a very private family where how much you earned was “nobody's business.” When I share my financial successes in these kinds of public arenas, I assure you it is not to toot my own horn. I’m telling you this because as the Garnett Newcombes – and every single other successful self-bosser I have ever met will tell you – the more you learn the more you earn. Investing in yourself, your education, and your business truly is money in the bank.

P.P.S. And since I’m sharing… The reason I was in New York was because a literary agent set up two whirlwind days of interviews with nine major publishing houses including Simon & Schuster, Collins, Crown/Random House, and Brown Little. The meetings were quickly followed by – are you ready – an auction which resulted in a bidding war. I am thrilled to say I have signed with Crown for a, drum roll please, six-figure contract for How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are. Somebody pinch me! I hope this inspires other first-time authors to go for it!

About the Author

"Profiting From Your Passions" expert Valerie Young abandoned her corporate cubicle to become the Dreamer in Residence at ChangingCourse.com offering resources to help you discover your life mission and live it. Her career change tips have been cited in Kiplinger's, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today Weekend, Woman's Day, and elsewhere and on-line at MSN, CareerBuilder, and iVillage.com. An expert on the Impostor Syndrome, Valerie has spoken on the topic of How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are to such diverse organizations as Daimler Chrysler, Bristol-Meyers Squibb, Harvard, and American Women in Radio and Television.

The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind. ~ William James

Featured Resource

Can One Person Really Change Your Life?

From Food Stamps to Entrepreneurial Success

If you really are serious about wanting to look in the mirror and see the boss, then there's someone I really want you to meet...

Valerie with Jeff Walker

One of the very best ways to be an entrepreneur yourself is to learn from people who have done it themselves. That's why I really want you to meet marketing guru (and I'm happy to say new friend) Jeff Walker. Jeff not only introduced me to marketing techniques that have - and I am not exaggerating here - literally doubled my income, he also happens to be one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet.

Jeff is one of the only big “internet marketing gurus” I know who genuinely cares about the “little guy.” One of his most inspiring success stories is about a guy named John who put his family in debt (we’re talking food stamps here) in his quest to make and market a board game. John was a success at making the game. It was the selling part that bombed. That is, until he met Jeff…

Over the years, Jeff has helped hundreds of regular people to launch small businesses in such diverse niches as health food, knitting, horse training, even business coaching in Poland. And, like you, the overwhelming majority had no previous marketing experience… and I do mean NONE.

I know you want to change course… preferably yesterday! That’s why I’m so excited to have a way for you to “meet” Jeff via a short talk he put together. In this talk he explains why you need to start thinking now about what it will take to succeed - even if you aren’t anywhere near starting your business… or having anything to sell.

The case studies Jeff shares here and in the follow up videos are very real. I know because I’ve personally met and talked to dozens of people who have learned and prospered from Jeff as I have. These are people who have launched very successful small businesses and in a very short period of time were able to replace their salaries. This is not hype. It is fact.

You don’t need to enter your email address to watch the video. It’s free to watch. But you DO NEED to sign up to watch the follow up case studies, which Jeff tells me are even better than the first. If there is any doubt in your mind that it’s really possible to make good money doing work you enjoy, you really do need to watch and learn from my friend Jeff.

The first 1-2 minutes of the video may not make a lot of sense to you unless you’re already familiar with the people and world of internet marketing. But hang in there for some really inspiring “regular Joe and Joanne” make good stories.

Again I highly recommend you continue to watch and learn by signing up to view Jeff’s other case studies. I guarantee they will be eye-opening. Click here to meet Jeff now ChangingCourse.com/recommends/jeff

Find Your Calling by Helping Others Realize Theirs

What could be more fun than sitting at home (or anywhere in the world really) and brainstorming with people over the telephone about creative ways they could make a living without a job − and actually getting paid to do it! Or running workshops on how to turn interests into income?

I can't tell you how gratifying it is to know that the work you do makes some small difference in other people's lives. Helping someone see possibilities, recognize their gifts, and connect the dots so they can turn their interests into income, is something that just comes naturally to me. Maybe it comes naturally to you too.

If you’re a creative thinker, are entrepreneurial, love to brainstorm, and want to get paid to do what comes naturally, then in literally days, you could be running your own business as an "Outside the Job Box Career Consultant." I’ll show you how.

Like me, you could work from home, brainstorming with people on the phone about creative ways they could turn their passions into profits and work at what they love…

That's what I do. And I can show you how, step-by-step, you can recreate my success…

…how you can grow a business that capitalizes on your interests and talents… and feeds your spirit while it fills your wallet.

And I'd like to do it in five days this May. That's right. Five days.

“This kind of 'work' is more than work... the clients really appreciate/enjoy it immensely... there's such a sense of gratitude from them... and I'm feeling that I'm involved in something so big... so sacred... Thanks!" ~ Kelly Williams, Certification Program Participant, 2007

Right now, it takes 16 weeks to go through my Outside-the-Box Career Counselor Certification Program. They don't feel like long weeks. Actually, they whiz by. But still. That's four months.

So, the first week in May, I'm going to shave that 16 weeks down to a very intensive five days.

They're going to be five days with full access to me. Five days when you'll clear your mind of other distractions. You'll have my undivided attention and guidance. And together we'll concentrate on creating and building for you a business that's both fulfilling… and viable.

A business helping other people make their dreams a reality.

It's not just my expertise that's important here. You’ll get to meet and then spend a full six months being personally mentored by Ilise Benun author of The Art of Self-Promotion and four other marketing guides. Together with this internationally known marketing expert you will create and carry out a personalized strategy for generating a steady stream of clients.

Something else happens when you get singularly-focused people together in a room. There's an energy that builds… and an amazing way that good ideas form, and then get molded and polished and transformed into something even better…

That's what this immersion program, this "summit" is all about. And I'd like to invite you to be a part of it.

I'm going to teach this group everything I've been teaching in my 16-plus week certification program… and more.

Plus the people with me at this summit in May are also going to walk away at the end of these five days with all the initial "hurdles" to starting a business cleared.

And by that I mean: You won't just walk away with a plan of action for yourself. But you'll leave with things like a name for your company… business cards… your own Web site domain name and host… marketing copy… a personalized, professional e-mail address… and, well, you get the idea.

You really will be on your way. In five days.

And, too, you'll be on my radar screen. And on the radar screen of all the other people you meet at this summit.

That's an invaluable thing. Because when you have people who understand what you want to do, thinking about ways they can help you do it -- you have a powerful network for success...

The Spring 2008 Outside the Job Box Career Consultant Certification program will take place Saturday, May 3 through Wednesday, May 7th in Northampton, MA.

Over 150 people have asked to be on the First in Line list to receive updates and advance notification of when the registration period will begin. The yearning for freedom, control, and satisfaction are truly universal… I’ve already heard from people from as far away as France, England, and the Bahamas.

Fortunately, not only is this kind of business you can run from anywhere in the world but the tools and techniques you’ll be learning really can work anywhere!

To learn what previous attendees had to say watch the video…

REGISTRATION INFORMATION: I am planning to open up the registration process at the end of next week.

The 2006 and 2007 Certification classes both sold out. The Spring 2008 program is going to be more personalized, more intense, and more immediately productive than anything else I've ever offered. If you have not yet gotten on the “First in Line” list to get updates, including advanced notification of when the registration doors open, you should to do that now:

“This program isa great opportunity for anyone interested in helping othersto change course. It's something that can put you in business immediatelyafter completion, if you choose. It's fun, challenging and inspiring. I'm so excited about doing this and full of ideas. Thank you, thank you forgiving me all the tools I need to get going.” ~ Barbara van Wickland, Certification Program Participant, 2007

The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up. ~ Paul Valery

Guest Article

Why Have a Dream

By Jennifer Manlowe

“...In spite of the difficulties of the moment, I still have a dream.” ~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.*

Avoid regret. Someday we will all lie on our deathbed looking back through the history of our lives—it’s true for most of us. We will undoubtedly think about what we wished we had done or accomplished. My own grandmother told me to avoid regretting what could have been, what should have been. So I am deciding today to pursue my dreams.

The world needs people like you to dream of something great and then to pursue it with all of your heart. Maybe you belong to a business, school or organization that started out with good intentions but has settled into the same ole, same ole. Shake them up and remind them of how they could really help people if only they would dream! Start your own supportive community of dreamers via MeetUp.com

Personal and family fulfillment. One of the things that happens when we stop pursuing our dreams is that a little piece of us dies and we become disheartened, if only in that area of our lives. Stepping up and pursuing your dream rekindles that passion and zeal that everyone has the capacity for and it’s truly contagious. Having a purpose helps us feel alive and engaged in the world around us. And when we’re happy, everybody wins!

Making the world a better place. All of the great accomplishments that have ever happened began with a person who had a dream. Somebody rebuffed the naysayer and said to herself, "This can be done, and I am the one who will do it." And in many instances they changed the world for the better. It isn't just the Martin Luther King's, the Mother Teresa’s and the J.F.K's either. Think of all the people most of us have never heard of that have started things large and small that help people every day.

Leaving a legacy. How will your children (nieces and nephews) remember you? As one who sought all that life had to offer, using your gifts and talents to their fullest extent, leading the family with a zest for life, or as a grouchy complainer who “could have been a contender”? Our children need to see that we dream; that we search for greater and more authentic creative expression. They in turn will do the same!

Where Do We Start?

Here are some ideas:

Reconnect with your dream. Set aside some time to let yourself dream. What have you placed on the back burner in order to play it safe? Settle on one or two dreams that you can and will pursue. Don't come up with too many. That will only deter you further. Remember, you can’t successfully train for a marathon by running 26 miles on the first day.

Decide that you will do it. This may seem elementary but many people never decide and commit fully to their dream. They simply keep "thinking" about it…and beat themselves up for never getting started – digging themselves down further into the hole of defeat.

Tell supportive others that you are going to do it. This puts you on the record as to what you are dreaming about. It makes you accountable…but the key word here is SUPPORTIVE. It will help you do it if for no other reason than to avoid embarrassment!

Develop a step-by-step plan. This is absolutely essential. You must sit down and write out a few things:

A timeline. How long will it take to the end?

Action steps. Point-by-point what you will do and when you will do them... commit to an end date for each of these actions…then check them off all along the way.

Resources from which you will need to draw. What research must you do? What resources will it take? Who will need to be involved for help or advice?

An evaluation tool. You need to evaluate from time to time whether you are progressing and feeling connected to this dream or not. Sometimes our initial “dreams” are someone else’s for us…i.e., the parent who wished we’d gone to Notre Dame and would have become a doctor.

A celebration. When you are done you should already have planned what you will do to celebrate. Make it big or at least invite a friend to sing your praises!

I have found that there is no better time than now. So, set aside some time today to get started on your dream. Follow the action plan and set your sights high! As my favorite writer George Eliot once said, “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”

About the Author

Jennifer Manlowe is an "outside the job box" creative career counselor. She is also an author, educator, and advisor with over 20 years of experience helping people create a life (and livelihood) that brings joy, self-sufficiency and a sense of contribution. Though Manlowe has earned advanced degrees in Philosophy, Psychology and Religion from Princeton and Drew University, she has found that most of her learning comes from working with others.

Note from Valerie:Jennifer was part of the 2006 Outside the Job Box Career Consultation Certification program. You can meet Jennifer and 20 other graduates from the 2006 and 2007 trainings at the Work at What You Love Workshop happening in this April.To learn more about the new Spring 2008 Certification Program go to ChangingCourse.com/firstinline.htm

Work at What You Love: The Life Changing Workshop for People Who Want to Quit Their Job and Work at What They Love

Discover How to Replace Your Job With Work You Really Love… and Gain the Freedom, Flexibility and Quality of Life You Deserve

Update: The Cost of Freedom

I was going to tell you all benefits of coming to the big Work at What You Love workshop happening this April 11-12. But you can click here anytime to get that: ChangingCourse.com/workshop.htm

Instead, after writing not one but two articles on attitudes about money, I feel compelled to say something about the price of this event.

To be blunt, there really is no one else out there delivering an educational and networking experience like this at anywhere near the price of this workshop.

After all I’m bringing the incredibly wise and entertaining Barbara Winter (best-selling author of Making a Living Without a Job) all the way from Las Vegas… plopping down a couple of thousand dollars to reserve an entire hotel ballroom and another thousand just to keep everyone caffeinated… to say nothing of the cost of printing a 65+ page workbook, and all the other expenses that go into putting on a big event like this.

My big concern is not my expenses. I can handle these. What concerns me is the “perception” of charging so little to attend. People are funny that way. For example, in consumer tests they’ve found that despite initially preferring a less pricy wine when told that one wine is more expensive, people switch their vote to that one.

With other people demanding $2,000 and $3,000 for a two-day seminar, at only $297 I worry that some people will think Work at What You Love can’t be worth much.

Sometimes though – and I know I speak for Barbara here – it’s not all about making money. Don’t get me wrong, neither of us is opposed to profiting from our own passion. It’s just that, when it comes to this particular workshop, money is just not the driving force.

This is the sixth time I’ve invited Barbara to co-present with me. Anyone who has ever seen us work together knows we have a ball together. Every year at the end of the workshop we turn to each other and say the exact same thing: “We changed a lot of lives today.” There simply is no way to put a price on that kind of satisfaction.

This year we want to change as many lives as possible. In the past we’ve filled that ballroom with a wonderfully diverse group of women and men of all ages and races from across the U.S. and Canada. We even had an attendee from as far away as Israel! We want to change even more lives this year. And, if keeping the price ridiculously low helps do that, well so be it.

The Extreme Early-Bird Registration discount ended February 24th. But you still have until March 15th to take advantage of the Still Great Early Registration discount and shave $50 off the already insanely low registration price of $297.

In the last issue, I introduced you to some of the inspiring entrepeneurs who will be speaking at the workshop. This panel is always a favorite part of the workshop for attendees. Take a moment now to listen is as last year's panel share their knowledge with the attendees at ChangingCourse.com/workshoppanel.htm

Join me as I tap two dynamic experts for their tips on what it takes to have and use money to support your dreams.

Maria Gamb, “The Anti-Sabotage Expert” coaches female entrepreneurs and other highly motivated professionals to overcome self sabotaging limiting beliefs about money, relationships and success allowing them to live abundant & successful lives without boundaries. In her spare time she enjoys traveling the world and the pursuit of the perfect purse.

Author, life coach, teacher Kamin Bell has successfully manifested careers, material possessions, and relationships. After stumbling financially she drew from her Christian faith to transform her relationship with money and in doing so changed her life. Today she is building a thriving speaking and writing business both within and beyond the Christian community. You don’t to be a person of any faith to benefit from Kamin’s work. Rather she’s a great example of someone who has learned the value of finding what Barbara Winter calls your “natural monopoly.” Learn more about Kamin and the many resources she has to offer at KaminBell.com

"How to Become Joyfully Jobless" Teleclass Series hosted by Barbara Winter

Barbara Winter

Learn what it takes to live the joyfully jobless life from the master − Barbara Winter, author of Making a Living Without a Job. A vivacious and wildly popular speaker, Barbara will address such topics as the power of multiple income streams… how to stop thinking like an employee and start thinking like an entrepreneur… why starting small is the smartest (and most profitable) way to launch your new enterprise… and much more.

Like mini-workshops, these monthly Joyfully Jobless Teleclasses are interactive, which means you get to ask questions and benefit from firsthand feedback from the woman I call the "Muse of Self-Bossing."

**A portion of all revenue from this Teleclass will go to support the entrepreneurial aspirations of impoverished people in the US and internationally via the micro-grant organization TrickleUp.org

Imagine every day to be the last of a life surrounded with hopes, cares, anger, and fear. The hours that come unexpectedly will be so much more the grateful. ~ Horace

The View From theOther Side

"I was turned down by 217 of the 242 investors I initially talked to. You have to have a tremendous belief in what you're doing and just persevere. The three venture capital firms we ended up with in 1989 are still on the board today and have been an invaluable resource.”

~ Evan Schultz, founder of Starbucks

Resources for a Change

Learn to Write Opinion Pieces The Op-Ed pages of major newspapers attract the attention of television producers, book agents, and policy makers… to say nothing about being able to sway public opinion and change the world! A single op-ed can make you part of a national debate. Sponsored by the Woodhull Institute of Ethical Leadership, this seminar will show you how to generate winning ideas, craft a powerful argument, use news hooks, address or preempt your potential critics, pitch an idea, and frame an issue to make your point and persuade your readers. This seminar is not just about writing op-eds -- it's about empowering you to find your voice and make a difference. The seminar is led by Catherine Orenstein. Her opinion pieces on women, power, popular culture, and human rights have run in the New York Times, Washington Post, the Miami Herald, and on the Knight-Ridder newswire and she has appeared on ABC TV World News, Good Morning America, MSNBC, CNN and NPR All Things Considered. Happening March 15th in San Francisco. Learn more at WoodHull.org/classes/index.php

Tax Savings Every Freelancer Should Take Find out where you can save... what the IRS really needs to know, how to make the most of those deductions for travel, meals, entertainment, home office, and more. To get answers to hundreds of tax questions along with practical worksheets you can use to make sure you're paying as little as possible to Uncle Sam, click here: TheTravelWritersLife.com/tax/16

Note: Changing Course does not accept paid advertisements from any of the resources listed here. This list is provided to expand your thinking about just how many interesting ways there are to make a living without a job!